Egmont Group Europe II Intersessional Meeting Concludes in Pristina: Advancing Regional AML/CFT Cooperation
Pristina, Kosovo, 08 December 2025 – The Egmont Group, Europe II Region, Intersessional Meeting has successfully concluded. The meeting brought together Egmont Group members from the region for two days of insights, collaboration, and discussions on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT).
The Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs), as a global organization, facilitates and prompts the exchange of information, knowledge, and cooperation amongst member FIUs. To strengthen coordination, the Egmont Group is represented across eight regional groups, which play a vital role in achieving its objectives of development, sharing expertise and fostering cooperation at a regional level. This structure enables secure information exchange between FIUs worldwide and supports joint efforts to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and related crimes.
The event opened with a speech by the caretaker Prime Minister of Kosovo, Mr. Albin Kurti, who highlighted that “Kosova has made considerable progress in reinforcing its legal and institutional framework in the area, with the aim of fighting these phenomena and harmonizing itself with European and international standards, as well as their effective enforcement. This approach further strengthens our cooperation, cohesiveness, and coordination. The Financial Intelligence Unit of the Republic of Kosova has performed well and has achieved satisfactory results in the identification and tracking of illegal financial income. The Government of the Republic of Kosova remains committed in its support for the FIU and other authorities in fighting these criminal activities.”
Further, his Excellency, the German Ambassador to Kosovo, Mr. Rainer Rudolph highlighted that “Illicit financial flows pose a major threat to the rules-based global order, to national and international security, to economic development, to state budgets and to public trust in institutions. The work of Financial Intelligence Units is therefore of critical importance for a prosperous, just and secure future for all of us. Germany contributes to the international fight against illicit financial flows for example through support of the six FIUs in the Western Balkans”.
Egmont Group, Regional Representatives represent Europe II represented by, Mrs. Michaela Schutz and Mrs. Ghizlane Dayou, emphasized that one of the major strengths of the region is that all FIUs contribute different knowledge and experience when tackling money laundering and terrorist financing. Criminals exploit any weakness in systems and cross borders. The FIUs in the region nevertheless show that together the FIUs can make it harder for criminals to succeed.
Director of FIU Kosovo Mr. Genc Rraci, among others, stated that “the presence of Prime Minister Kurti here today shows a strong political commitment from Kosovo in the fight against money laundering and terrorism financing.
Moreover, it shows that our government supports FIU Kosovo, supports international cooperation, and supports the work of the Egmont Group.
Mr. Rraci also stated that “when we share information and when we work together, we are stronger and more effective, therefore the Egmont Group, and especially the Europe II Region, is very important for Kosovo. We value very much the cooperation and support we receive from all FIUs in this region and beyond.”
On the first day of the Europe II meeting in Kosovo the region endorsed a paper on Immediate Outcome 2, Immediate Outcome 6 and Recommendations 29 and 40, that had been co-led by FIU Azerbaijan and FIU Gibraltar. The newly drafted paper examines 23 FATF and MONEYVAL Mutual Evaluation Reports, and identifies recurring strengths, systemic weaknesses, and common recommended actions that influence effective outcomes in the use of financial intelligence and international cooperation.
A presentation delivered by FIU Gibraltar highlighted the substantial analytical work undertaken to review and code the detailed language of the MERs, mapping cross-cutting themes that reflect operational challenges across the region. It also outlined the paper’s core findings, particularly the critical need to strengthen LEA use of FIU intelligence, improve STR quality, enhance operational and strategic analysis, and reinforce coordination frameworks. The project leads have further proposed training priorities designed to address these gaps and support jurisdictions in advancing their AML/CFT effectiveness in line with FATF standards.
The paper is a very useful tool for jurisdictions, and a decision has been made to share the document with other Egmont regions and international bodies to support broader peer learning.
The Egmont Regional Europe II Group will persist in supporting the Egmont Group’s goals of fostering development, enhancing cooperation, and facilitating the exchange of experiences at the regional level.
The Egmont Group would like to extend its sincere thanks to FIU Kosovo and GIZ (Die Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) for their outstanding organisation of this fruitful event. Furthermore, the Group would also like to express gratitude to the Regional Representatives and all the Financial Intelligence Units who joined and contributed to the success of the gathering.
